Crosstalk: August 21, 2015

Is your family in crisis? Are the relationships you have with your children perhaps not what they should be? Are you concerned about a child that is making wrong decisions? Is rebellion by one or more children an issue and creating stress? The Bible tells us to bring up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord but how do we go about doing that? What if our kids just won't listen? If one or more of these questions describes your household, this Crosstalk provided some answers as it presented Mark Massey as the guest. Mark is the director of Victory Academy for Boys, a group of God-loving, discipleship professionals dedicated to strengthening families in crisis with the truths of Scripture. Is there hope for the home going through crisis? Mark believes there is via accountability with godly people and keeping yourself immersed in the truths of God's Word. Mark noted that the pressures that teens are experiencing are the same as they've always been but they come out in peculiar ways within the context of the current culture. For example, he sees today's teens struggling with the reality of God yet they are greatly affected by the influence and impact of the media, particularly through the gateway of the Internet. This forms the view of reality for young people and where God fits. That's important because for the young person God doesn't generally fit in the movies, social media or the sexual struggles. In the end, God gets sidelined. So Mark sees reality of God as key to helping young people. Another point he explained in greater detail was the sexual struggle. In times past, this was something that went unexplained in the context of many families. It's out in the open today. On the positive side it gives us a chance to deal with it but on the other hand Mark described this topic as being so 'out there' that our kids are having to deal with a lot of 'trash.' Acceptance and security is also important for youth. You may have been brought up to be quiet and just accept what your parents said as real and right. However, today with the Internet and the hyper-exposure to communication, the thought of just accepting what is true just isn't going to happen. This means kids have to somehow be able to question things yet still feel secure and accepted. Mark brings help and hope for struggling families by also looking at: --The 'Where did I ever go wrong?' question put forth by some parents. --Facing the reality of the importance to teach our children what they need to know about God right now. --What to do when a child doesn't respond to training in the truth. --The Wild Heart Adventure camp.